The subject of the novel is taken from an actual strike in Japan in 1954 at Omi Kenshi, a silk thread and fabric manufacturer, which lasted for 106 days.

[5] Komazawa Zenjiro runs his silk factory like a family and feels like a "father" to his workers.

Through various intrigues initiated by the trade unionist Okano, the company's workers are instigated into a strike, which escalates to such an extent that Komazawa dies of a stroke.

Silk and Insight was first serialised ten times in the monthly magazine Gunzo between January 1964 and October 1964.

[7][8] Silk and Insight was later translated into English in 1998 by Hiroaki Sato and edited by Frank Gibney as the seventh volume in The Library of Japan series, produced by the Pacific Basin Institute at Pomona College.